Highlands Hammock State Park

Highlands Hammock State Park
IUCN category V (protected landscape/seascape)
Location	Highlands County, Florida, USA
Nearest city	Sebring, Florida
Coordinates	27°28′16″N 81°32′31″W / 27.47111°N 81.54194°W / 27.47111; -81.54194Coordinates: 27°28′16″N 81°32′31″W / 27.47111°N 81.54194°W / 27.47111; -81.54194
Area	9,000 acres (36 km2)
Established	1931
Governing body	Florida Department of Environmental Protection

Highlands Hammock State Park is a 9,000-acre (3,640 ha) park 4 miles (6 km) west of Sebring in Highlands County, Florida, off U.S. 27. The park opened in 1931, four years before the Florida state park system was created.

Elevated boardwalks meander through an old-growth bald cypress swamp with cabbage palmettos, ferns, bromeliads, orchids and other epiphytes. Some trees are believed to be over a thousand years old, and one is possibly the largest oak in Florida, with a girth of over 36 feet (11 m).

White-tailed deer, American alligators, gopher tortoises, frogs, otters, golden silk spiders, pileated woodpeckers, red-shouldered hawks, barred owls and Florida scrub jays are common in the park. Florida black bears, bald eagles, white ibis, gray squirrels, bobcats and the rare Florida panther are seen on occasion.